Jess and Josh originally met in Sunday School when they were 3 years old in Portage, Michigan. Jess, her younger sisters Steph and Kristen, and Josh's younger sister Emily all danced at Excel Dance Centre together. The Hoogerheide and Hardham families attended the same church and dance studio for many years together making it so Josh and Jess were able to grow up together. Throughout high school, Josh had a crush on Jess, and Jess had a crush on Josh but it wasn't until the summer before junior year of college that they started dating. Josh went to Penn State University and Jess went to Western Michigan University, but during Excel's dance recital in 2019, they reconnected. Josh asked his sister Emily to tell Jess he said hi which resulted in Emily, Josh's mom, and dad all relaying this message to Jess. After the recital, they began talking and spent the whole summer together before going back to college. 2 years of long distance were not easy but well worth it. After graduating college they both moved to Morgantown, West Virginia where Josh attends West Virginia University School of Medicine and Jess is an RN at the university hospital. They adopted the best 100lb German Shepherd dog, Axel, who is incredibly spoiled. Josh proposed to Jess on the beach in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico while on a cruise in April 2022 (Carnival cruise of course). The proposal took place after a catamaran sail and snorkel excursion where Jess not only got stung by a jellyfish twice but also broke her foot making the journey to the beach quite the scene.